Around the world, many workers spend day after day at the office, often from early morning to early evening. However, some employees tend to focus on projects and deadlines while ignoring the upkeep of their workspaces. One survey revealed that one in 10 office workers cleans their desk just once a month, and nearly one in 10 admit their workstation never gets disinfected.
Building service contractors (BSCs) should understand that in an office setting, cleanliness plays a key role in keeping employees healthy and leads to a more productive workforce. A clean and hygienic office also creates an appealing environment for staff and visiting clients and shapes a company's brand image. With these facts in mind, BSCs responsible for cleaning commercial offices should focus on several key approaches to keep these spaces clean.
It Starts with Hands
BSCs must understand the role hand hygiene plays in office cleanliness and health. Four out of every five common infections, such as cold and flu viruses, are spread by hands. Therefore, increased hand hygiene has enormous potential to improve overall office hygiene and keep employees from missing work. In addition, clean hands spread fewer germs onto high-touch surfaces like desks and doorknobs.
BSCs can stress the importance of hand hygiene by encouraging offices to stock hand sanitizer? the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends a product containing 60% alcohol or more. Be purposeful about positioning sanitizer dispensers around the office in entrances, hallways, board rooms and common areas. Look for hybrid dispensers with both an automatic and a manual option to provide uninterrupted hand hygiene. For restrooms, BSCs should regularly refill a hand soap product that cleans hands and leaves a pleasant scent in the washroom for future users, an extra sign of cleanliness.
Supervising Key Areas
Inside an office, numerous high-touch surfaces, as well as hard-surface and carpet floors, inevitably attract germs and stains. It is crucial to maintain these areas to promote a hygienic and clean workplace:
Cohesive Office Cleaning
Regardless of the size of the office space they oversee, BSCs must have a comprehensive and cohesive cleaning plan in place. They first need to understand that a cleaner, healthier office is a more productive office and that cleaning properly and consistently ultimately benefits the company's bottom line. Then, BSCs should work with building and office managers to carefully devise a cleaning strategy and schedule, zero in on key areas of focus and select products designed to take on the tasks at hand.
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